You Asked

‍‍May 24, 2013 - טו סיון תשעג By Erin Clare

You asked for comments on your story “Progressive Maryland” (May 3). The left-leaning direction of our state is nothing to be proud of. Our state is being held hostage by a few counties that are pushing the rest of the state in that direction. In 2012, President Barack Obama only carried seven counties, and in 2010, former Gov. Robert Ehrlich carried all but six counties. A quiet conversation at a Kiddish lunch with friends or at a social event will also show that the Jewish community is not in lock-step with the present situation in Annapolis. Most of us are afraid to speak up with our true opinions. Maryland recently ranked the 10th worst business climate in the country. Maryland consistently loses major businesses in the D.C. area to Virginia. Look at Arlington or the Dulles Airport areas and see how it compares to Prince George’s County. Look at what happened to movie making in Maryland now that the state has pulled most of the subsidies. Even “Hairspray,” a movie set in Baltimore, was filmed in California.

How many new taxes and fees has our current governor [Martin O’Malley] given us, starting with the 20-percent increase in the sales tax and ending this year with the 20-cent increase in the gas tax, two of the most regressive taxes?

On the previous page [in the May 3 edition] there was a story about Rep. John Sarbanes (“Health-Care Costs Will Stabilize”) full of “may” and “might” and “should” and “I believe” related to Obamacare. The accompanying photo that showed Rep. Nancy Pelosi in the background is appropriate, recalling her famous statement, “Let’s pass this so we can find out what’s in it.” We found out that CareFirst is increasing rates by 25 percent, and who knows what other unintended consequences we will find as we get closer to 2014.